NSW/ACT footballers from seven regions are about to commence state trials at Coffs Harbour for selection with the U18 NSW/ACT RAMS team.

Being part of the U18 championships is an important stepping stone on the way to an AFL career. In the last five years 52 players from NSW and the ACT have been recruited to AFL clubs (19 were listed last year). Players from the GWS and Swans academies will also try out for the squad.

The ACT and NSW South Coast form one of the seven regions. All the ACT clubs are represented, including Marist, who field an U18s team in the local comp. Three players from Batemans Bay, Pambula and Merimbula have also made the squad.

This article also mentions GWS’ partnership with the Uni of Western Sydney. The interesting bit is that they will both collaborate on the uni’s schools program, which operates in 400 schools in greater Western Sydney (that’s the uni’s description).